Entertainment Weekly - 11.2019

Poetic Justice

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When Michael B. Jordan learned
about Bryan Stevenson, the lawyer
and social activist at the center
of Destin Daniel Cretton’s Just
Mercy, there was no doubt he would take the
role. “I felt a sense of responsibility to run
toward this story and use my platform to get it
out to the masses,” says Jordan of Stevenson’s
quest to free a wrongfully imprisoned man on
death row (played by Jamie Foxx). “Because I
think he’s a real-life superhero.”
While the Fantastic Four and Black Panther
star, 32, knows plenty about superheroes, he
enjoyed going down in scale to “really touch the
community and shine a light on real issues,”
namely, criminal-justice reform, mass incarcera-
tion, and racial bias in the judicial system. Feeling
an extra sense of “caution and respect” playing a
real person, Jordan hopes his portrayal of Steven-
son sparks conversations and calls the audience to
action. “You don’t have to be some fancy, educated

DIRECTED BY Destin Daniel Cretton

STARRING Michael B. Jordan, Jamie

Foxx, Brie Larson IN THEATERS Dec. 25

JUST MERCY

W

hopes of “opening up doors for the

next generations of people from all

walks of life.”

“One of the top studios in the

world is saying that we’re backing

this message, so I think that sets a

precedent,” says Jordan of Warner-

Media, which will issue annual

diversity reports to ensure prog-

ress. “We have a long way to go, but

it was a great step. You see people

who have been working in their

craft for 30 years, and for them to

finally be a department head,

they’re walking around with pride

and excelling and owning that

position. That’s a powerful thing.”

—Derek Lawrence

↓ The changemaker Michael B. Jordan (left) and Jamie Foxx await the verdict in Just Mercy

defense attorney to attack this

issue,” he says. “Each person can do

something to be a part of the fight, to

be a part of the change.”

And Jordan is walking the walk

when it comes to being a part of the

change, helping lead the push for

diversity in Hollywood. Following

Frances McDormand’s 2018 Oscars

speech about inclusion riders,

which aim to improve gender and

racial representation on both sides

of the camera, Jordan announced

that his production company,

Outlier Society, would use the

initiative on all future projects,

with the first being Just Mercy.

But he didn’t stop there, further

collaborating with WarnerMedia to

implement the inclusion policy in

all company-wide projects in the